NFL Trade Rumors 2017: Philip Rivers Reportedly Interested In San Francisco 49ers, LA Chargers' QB Involved In Latest Speculation
The 2017 Super Bowl matchup isn’t even set, but there are already trade rumors regarding one of the NFL’s top quarterbacks. With the Chargers moving from San Diego to Los Angeles, there is speculation that Philip Rivers will try to force his way onto another team.
Rivers has made it clear that he didn’t want the team to move, saying he felt “numb” after learning about the relocation. There were rumors that he wanted to be dealt two years ago, and now there’s a report that claims the signal caller is eyeing a move to another West Coast team.
The San Francisco 49ers are coming off their worst season in team history, which forced the organization to fire both head coach Chip Kelly and general manager Trent Baalke. They are looking to replace quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and Rivers would be a significant upgrade.
Rivers led the NFL with 19 interceptions in the 2016 season, but he’s still better than most of the league’s signal callers. His 94.7 career passer rating is good for eighth all-time, and he’s thrown at least 26 touchdown passes in nine straight seasons.
But despite Rivers’ reservations about moving to LA, it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll be forcing his way elsewhere. Despite his reservations, Rivers has publicly said he’s looking forward his future the Chargers.
“I’m going to embrace it and give them all I got for the short time I got left,” Rivers told “Hardwick & Richards” of KLSD San Diego Sports Radio.
A report by Pro Football Talk claims that a source close to the situation says the rumor that Rivers wants to go to San Francisco is false. Rivers might not be happy about having to play more than two hours away from his home in San Diego, but San Francisco’s Levi’s Stadium is more than a seven-hour trip from where the Chargers played their home games from 1961-2016.
Even if Rivers did want to be traded, the Chargers would have little incentive to accommodate him. He has three years left on his contract, and the team’s defense and injuries, not Rivers, has been largely to blame for San Diego’s recent struggles. The Chargers finished ninth in points scored in the regular season.
Rivers has played 13 seasons with the Chargers since the team acquired him on the first day of the 2004 NFL Draft.
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